Research and Professional Interests

My research is focused on understanding the connections between the interpersonal climate in schools and school violence. Much of the current literature on school violence prevention focuses efforts solely on changing students, with an individualistic model and assumption that students lack fundamental social skills in dealing with conflicts.  While it is important to address such issues, we must also pay close attention to the broader social contexts in schools if we are to sustain safe, inspiring learning environments.  The safest schools are social spaces where students, teachers, administrators, and parents collectively create communities of connection and interpersonally meaningful relationships to inspire mutual respect, positive school engagement, and learning.  My current research is inspired by examining strategies and intervention programs that optimize healthy interpersonal connections and social climates in schools. 

School  Violence Prevention - Related Links and Resources

Teachers Talk: School Culture, Safety, & Human Rights
http://www.nesri.org/Teachers_Talk.pdf

American Psychological Association: Report on Zero-Tolerance
http://www.apa.org/releases/zerotolerance.html
http://www.apa.org/releases/ZTTFReportBODRevisions5-15.pdf (Full Report as PDF)

California Healthy Kids Survey
http://www.wested.org/cs/chks/print/docs/chks_home.html

Evidence-based Programs
http://www.capso.org/pdfs/SchoolPreventionPrograms.pdf

Consortium for the Prevention of School Violence (CPSV)
http://www.preventschoolviolence.org
Position Statement on School Shootings - Fall 2006

Collaborative for  Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL)  
http://www.CASEL.org

Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice
http://cecp.air.org/school_violence.asp  

The Hamilton Fish Institute
National resource for the research and development of school violence prevention strategies.
http://hamfish.org/cms/

The UK Observatory for the Promotion of Non-Violence
http://ukobservatory.com/

Facts About Violence Among Youth and Violence in Schools
http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/sch-shooting.htm

U. S. Department of Justice - Office for Victims of Crimes - "Reporting School Violence"
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/ovc/publications/bulletins/legalseries/bulletin2/welcome.html

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
http://ojjdp.ncjrs.org/

National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/

Indicators of School Crime and Safety
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2007/2007003.pdf

Project Cornerstone
http://www.projectcornerstone.org/html/about/index.htm

Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence - Model Programs
http://www.colorado.edu/cspv/blueprints/modelprograms.html

The Center for the Prevention of School Violence
http://www.juvjus.state.nc.us/cpsv/

Challenge Day / Be the Change
http://www.challengeday.org

Teen Truth: An Inside Look at Bullying and School Violence
http://www.teentruthlive.com

No Bully : Anti-Bullying Programs for School
http://www.nobully.com

Soul Shoppe - (Elementary School-Age Programs)
http://www.soulshoppe.com

OTHER RESEARCH & RESOURCE RELATED LINKS

Psycho-Physiology of Learning - The Institute of HeartMath
http://www.heartmath.org/research/research-publications.html#clinicalhealthRESEARCH

     Addressing Anger - Free Teacher's Guides/Lesson plans for teaching emotional regulation
     http://www.heartmath.org/estk_t/teach_intro.html

     Scientific Advisory Board for the Institute of HeartMath
     http://www.heartmath.org/about-us/scientific-advisory-board.html

Campus Calm
http://www.campuscalm.com 

Gender and Achievement Research Program
http://www.rcgd.isr.umich.edu/garp/

Patterns of Adaptive Learning Study
http://www.umich.edu/~pals

Institute for Social Research
http://www.isr.umich.edu/

Inter-University Consortium for Social and Political Research 
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/

“Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit.
You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.